MLB Player News

Cartaya has been added to the Dodgers' 60-man player pool.

One of a group of promising young catchers in the organization, Cartaya has both the defensive and offensive skills to succeed at the position in the majors. However, he is only 18 years old and has yet to ascend beyond rookie ball, so it is unlikely that he sees any big-league playing time in 2020.

Campusano will be part of the Padres' 60-man summer camp.

This is hardly surprising, as MLB teams need a handful of catchers in their 60-man player pools in order to work with their young pitchers and Campusano has a chance to be the Padres' catcher of the future. However, he is clearly behind Francisco Mejia and Austin Hedges on the depth chart and Luis Torrens is probably a better bet to get MLB action as well, considering Campusano has never played above High-A.

Raleigh will be part of the Mariners' 60-man training roster.

The 23-year-old switch hitter is Seattle's best catching prospect, but that is damning with faint praise. He had a 134 wRC+ with a .274 ISO at High-A last year but hit just .228 with a 29.6 percent strikeout rate in 39 games after a promotion to Double-A. Raleigh may get some time in the majors this year, but he is firmly behind Tom Murphy and Austin Nola on the depth chart.

Huff was added to the Rangers' 60-man player pool Sunday.

Huff, who is not on the 40-man roster, blew up in 2019 when he swatted a combined 28 home runs and knocked in 72 runs for Low-A Hickory and High-A Down East. He maintained an exit velocity of 91 MPH -- the MLB average was 88.1 -- per T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. The 6-foot-5 Huff may not remain a catcher as he moves forward, but his power potential is intriguing enough for the Rangers to find him a home. He's played first base in each of the last two seasons, but the Rangers are not currently planning a position shift. It's unlikely he'll get an opportunity to face MLB pitchers in 2020, but the Rangers will have him work with an established backstop, like Jeff Mathis, so that he can further his development behind the dish.

Knizner is part of the Cardinals' player pool that will report to summer camp July 1, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

Knizner's presence in the player pool is of little surprise, and he's expected to be part of the expanded Opening Day roster as well. The 25-year-old projects to slot in behind veterans Yadier Molina and Matt Wieters behind the dish, and he could potentially see time at the designated hitter slot that will be available in the National League for the 2020 season.

Godoy is part of the Cardinals' player pool that will report to summer camp July 1, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

The long-time minor-leaguer finally found his way to Triple-A Memphis last season, slashing .316/.368/.468 across 87 plate appearances. Godoy seems a likely candidate to eventually transition to the pool of up to 30 players that will train off-site and be available for promotion once the regular season begins.

Naylor will be a part of the Indians' 60-man player pool this season.

Naylor is the Indians' top catching prospect, and he will get to train with some of the organization's best pitching prospects at an alternate site while the other three catchers in the 60-man pool will train with fellow big leaguers at Progressive Field. Naylor hit .243/.313/.421 with 11 home runs and seven steals at Low-A last year.

Stephenson will be a part of the Reds' 60-man player pool this season.

While Stephenson is on the 40-man roster and viewed as the team's catcher of the future, he is unlikely to see a major role in 2020. Tucker Barnhart, Curt Casali and Kyle Farmer are the only catchers who will be training at Great American Ball Park.

Heim, who was in a heated competition for the backup catcher job when spring training was suspended, is now highly likely to make the Athletics' Opening Day roster, Melissa Lockard of The Athletic reports.

Heim turned plenty of heads in Cactus League play with a .325 average (8-for-25), enough that he'd made up significant ground on Austin Allen in the battle for the backup catcher job by the time play was paused. While it may have been a close call for manager Bob Melvin had the regular season unfolded under normal circumstances with teams limited to 26-man rosters, Saxon notes the fact there are now four extra slots to work with almost certainly serves to lock in spots for both young backstops. The fact Heim is already on the 40-man roster only ups his chances of staying put when the regular season begins.

Stubbs will likely be part of the Astros' expanded roster, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Stubbs lost out on the backup catcher job to Dustin Garneau in spring training and was optioned to Triple-A Round Rock, but the luxury of an expanded roster means Houston can carry a third catcher. The Astros have talked about using Stubbs at other positions, which could benefit him as the team trims its roster from 30 to 28 two weeks into the season, then from 28 to 26 two weeks later.